Sunday, October 14, 2012

Dawson Creek.

Simmer down, I'm not writing an entire blog post about the saga of Dawson and Joey. I could, but that's not what I'm doing today. Dawson Creek is a park amid a corporate park out in the suburb of Hillsboro. I had never been there before so when I heard Sarah Swanson and her husband Max were leading a bird walk out there I could not resist tagging along.

Sarah focusing the scope on a Cooper's Hawk

Like many of the other birders, I was most excited by the promise of Acorn Woodpeckers. We found many along our walk that seemed hellbent on showing us how they got their name. First they would fly to one of the many oak trees to nab an acorn...

Then they would fly back to the dead "granary" trees that were filled with holes they had created and put away their acorn. They would often try a few holes before finding the right fit, but as soon as they did they would be off to grab the next one.

Acorn Woodpeckers work together to defend their granaries from thieving squirrels and Scrub-Jays and rely mainly on their stockpile for winter nourishment. I watched three of the woodpeckers gather close together in one oak tree like they were taking a break together...

They are really such cool birds, and I was psyched to finally see them earn their name. The world makes sense now.

Dawson Creek is pretty famous from TV right? I love the last shot of the park. But the Acorn Woodies would have been my favorite! How cool, to see the Acorn woodie at work. Seeing them would have made my day! Great post and photos, Jen!